BANCROFT
LIBRARY

THE LIBRARY

THE UNIVERSITY

OF CALIFORNIA

•4

Publications of the Civil-Service Reform Association

No. 4

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM

NEW YORK CUSTOM-HOUSE

WILLARD BROWN

NEW YORK
PUBLISHED FOR THE

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM ASSOCIATION

G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS
1882

TJu Civil-Service Reform Association,
Publications and Documents now ready (Jan., 1882).

PUBLICATIONS.

I. Purposes of the Civil-Service Reform Association, including
its constitution. Per copy, 10 cts. Per 100, . . $2 75

II. The Beg^inning of the Spoils System in the National Gov-
ernment, 1829-30. (Reprinted, by permission, from Parton's
" Life of Andrew Jackson.") Per copy, 10 cts. Pei 100, $300

III. The Spoils System and Civil-Service Refoj ti in the Custom-

House and Post-Office at New York. By Dorman B. Eaton.
136 pages, Svo. Per copy, 50 cts. Per 100, . $25 00

IV. Civil-Service Reform in the New York Custom-House. By

WiLLARD Brown. Per copy, 5 cts. Per 100. . $3 00

itom-

; Sec-
^2 25
made
leton,
;veral
•com-

52 50
ition.

53 00

St of
50
50

.75

IN PREPARATION.

A History of the Spoils System. By Geo. Wm. Curtis.

The Effect of the Spoils System on Party Nominations. By

Horace White.
Political Assessments. By A. R. Macdonough.
The Objection to the Reform that it would produce an Aristocracy

of Office-Holders. By E. L. Godkin.

Other publications will follow.

[Donations for the general purposes of the Association are requested. Checks
should be drawn to order of John C. Eno, Treasurer, and addressed to William Potts,
Secretary, 44 Pine Street, New York City.]

Orders for the publications will be filled by the Secretary, or by

G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS, Publishers for the Society,

27 and 29 West Twenty-Third Street, New York.

Publications of the Civil-Service Reform Association

No. 4

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM

NEW YORK CUSTOM-HOUSE

WILLARD BROWN

NEW YORK

PUBLISHED FOR THE

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM ASSOCIATION

G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS
1882

■ANCROFT LIBRARY

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM

IN THE

NEW YORK CUSTOM-HOUSE.

*' A LTHOUGH the system of appointment by competitive
J~^ examination in the New York Custom-House has been
an experiment and is by no means perfect, it has worked wonders.
The increase of emulation and efficiency in the clerks has been re-
markable ; so eager are they to improve and advance, that at
present they often learn as much in one year as they learned un-
der the old system in six years. The clerks have more indepen-
dence and self-respect than formerly ; they are less cringing, and
this year, for the first time in my recollection, they openly re-
belled against political assessments. If I had had the utmost
freedom of appointment I could not have chosen better men than
those who have obtained positions under the system of competitive
examinations. In fact, in order to have obtained men equal to
the present officers, I should have had to resort to the present
method." Such are the remarks of Naval Officer Burt on the
success of competitive examinations in the New York Custom-
House.

The present system began under the order of March 6, 1879,
and up to August i, 1881, 1,077 applicants had been examined,
and 177 had secured appointments. Under the rule of patron-
age, men were often appointed who were totally unfit to fulfil their
official duties. Clerks would sometimes absent themselves from
the custom-house for weeks, nominally to work up their election
district, actually to " loaf " and dissipate ; even in the custom-

4 CIVIL SERVICE,

house they had been seen in a helpless state of intoxication. If
they were discharged they had only to use their political influence
to be re-instated. With such influence behind him an officer was
inclined to be insubordinate and insolent ; without it, he became
servile, and the consequence was the loss of discipline and self-
respect throughout the department. At present, however, a clerk
who enters the Custom- House, having been successful, in an open
examination over all competitors, knows that he has to thank him-
self alone for his position, and that the least insubordination or
lack of duty will cause his dismissal. Consequently there exist
among the clerks ability, independence, and discipline.

Collector Robertson, of the New York Custom-House, says :
"When I first entered on the duties of the collectorship it was
with the intention of having some method of appointment which
would give the ablest and most efficient subordinate officers to
my department. I was not more in favor of appointment by com-
petitive examination than of any other system. T soon found,
however, that it would be impossible for me ^o attend to the
regular business of my office and at the same time personally
examine the merits of the multitude of candidates for positions.
Some system of examination was necessary, and, as I informed a
committee of the New York Chamber of Commerce, I determined
to give trial to the existing system of competitive examinations.
In that view I have made my appointments from candidates who
have obtained the highest rank in the examinations. I have
made only four removals, and these were on account of intoxi-
cation of officers during business hours. Appointment by com-
petitive examinations is the best method which I am at present
aware of, and that method I shall favor until a better one is shown
me.

Promotions are based on competitive examinations and on past
record ; emulation, therefore, spurs on the officers to a degree of
industry and patience which is remarkable for employees. The
officers who were appointed through patronage have been forced on-
ward by those who have entered through the competitive examina-

CIVIL SERVICE. 5

tions ; they fear the ability and ambition of the new element, and
while they sometimes growl and rebel they are obliged to keep up
with the pace of excellence which now obtains. Our merchants have
testified to the improvement in the efficiency and politeness of the
Custom-House officers, and a delegation from the New York
Chamber of Commerce recently waited on the Collector and made
a formal request that the method of appointment by competitive
examinations should be continued. The present system is by no
means perfect, and it has received the opposition, both open and
secret, of high officials ; but it has worked so well in comparison
with the system of patronage that it may be called a remarkable
success.

Mr. John M. Comstock, Deputy Naval Officer and Recording
Secretary of the Board of Examiners in the New York Custom-
House, says : " As an experiment the competitive examinations
ha.ve been eminently successful. We have had only local exami-
ners ; we have had the benefit of no perfected system ; we have
been hampered in our action ; yet the improvements in conse-
quence of the examinations have astonished us. The new clerks
are abler men than those who were appointed under the old
regime ; they are more ambitious to rise, and their example has
acted as a leaven to increase the efficiency of the whole depart-
ment. The new system has made the officers more efficient and
manly, and has raised the moral tone of the whole force. 1 do
not wish it to be inferred that excellent men have not entered the
service under the old system ; but it is certain that the entrance
of such men must be regarded as the result of accident."

At present there are 1,213 public servants in the Custom-House,
with salaries amounting to $1,795,885 per annum. 1,077 of these,
with salaries amounting to $1,680,150, are appointed on competi-
tive examinations. In the remaining 1*36, are comprised the col-
lector, deputy collectors, naval officer, deputy naval officers, sur-
veyor, appraisers, engineers, ushers, laborers, etc. The following
is the list of officers who were under the examination rules in
October, 1880.

CIVIL SERVICE.

ADMISSION ONLY.

PROMOTION ONLY.

Inspectors . 320

Inspectresses . . 8

Night inspectors . 118

Store-keepers • . 70

Measurers of vessels

Weighers ....

Weighers' foremen .

Weighers' assistants . 75

Gangers

Gangers' assistants . 11

Officers ... 97 .

. 201

Clerks, surveyor's office 3 .

Clerks, naval office .21

. 52

723 290

Total 1,013.

The examinations are in charge of the Examining Board, which
consists of Gen. N. G. Williams, Deputy Collector ; Mr. John M.
Comstock, Deputy Naval Officer ; and Mr. J. L. Livingston, for
the surveyor. Mr. H. W. Gourley is the acting Secretary. Any
person not legally disqualified for appointment may be examined
for admission, on written application to the collector or naval
officer. Regular admission examinations are held quarterly,
with intermediate ones when necessary. Sixty persons, on the
average, apply at each admission examination, which lasts from
9 A. M. until 4 p. M. Each applicant is designated by a number,
and his name is known only to the secretary of the board ; under
that number his papers are examined and his rank is determined.
The names of the applicants are made known to the board after
the standing of each is determined. The board sends to the col-
lector, naval officer, or surveyor, as the case may be, the highest
names on the list, and from these the appointments are made.
Some discretion is usually given to the appointing power ; thus, if

CIVIL SERVICE. 7

one office is to be filled, the three highest names are sent in. Al-
most invariably, however, he who obtains the highest rank receives
the appointment.

Those who stand high in one examination, but who fail to ob-
tain an appointment, are carried over to find their appropriate
rank in the next list of applicants. Thus, a person who has failed
to obtain an appointment on one examination, may, without fur-
ther trial, receive an appointment some months later. Examples
of several examinations are given below :

Date.

Number
examined.

Salary of
office.

Number
appointed.

Highest and

lowest mark of

those

appointed.

26th examination

For admission

Jan. 6, 1880

$1,200

91.90, 83.98

40th examination

For admission

July 8, 1880

1,200

93.41, 86.89

53d examination

For admission

July 14, 1881

1,200

93.21, 83.80

30th examination

For promotion

Feb. 19, 1880

2,000

90.09, 86.10

33d examination

1,400

For promotion

M'ch25,i88o

and
1,600

87.64, 75.70

56th examination

■

For promotion

Oct. 18, 1881

1,600

91. II.

The officers are divided into grades represented by salaries of
$1,200, $1,400, $1,600, $1,800, and $2,000. No officer can be
promoted unless he obtains the minimum, or 75 per cent, of the
maximum work. If, however, a high grade clerk receives the
minimum mark he takes precedence over a clerk of lower grade,
although the latter may receive the higher rank. For example, if

CIVIL SERVICE,

a $1,200 and an $1,800 clerk compete for a $2,000 position, and
both receive at least the minimum mark, the latter, even if lower
in rank in the examination, obtains the appointment ; while
the former is promoted to the $1,800 clerkship just vacated.
This system of promotion has been found by experience to be
advantageous.

The examination papers are determined upon the day before,
and are printed the night before, the examination. The utmost
impartiality guides the action of the board ; a high official in the
custom house, who recently desired to know the examination
number of a certain applicant, was informed by the secretary of
the board that such information was against the rules.

Great praise is due the members of the board for the conscien-
tious care and patience with which they have administered their
duties. Although their work has at times been arduous they have
received no compensation for it. Justice demands that they should
be paid a suitable salary.

The marking has become so systematized that nine tenths of it
is a mere mathematical process. ' The scale of marks for admission
is as follows :

SUBJECTS.

Dictation (including orthography)
u C Notation and numeration )

'% 1 Addition . . . . j *
% \ Fractions .....
■t. Applied Problems ) ...

^ (^Accounts . • f .

Geography, history, and government

Grammar — syntax

Letter and brief ....

Penmanship ....

Time

General average of previous marks

Total ....

RELATIVE WEIGHT.

300

•

500

200

100

. 300

200

. 400

2,500

Within a week after the examination each candidate is informed

CIVIL SERVICE. 9

of his mark and standing. His papers, which are placed upon
file, can be reviewed by him at any time in the presence of the
examiners, and if, in his opinion, he has been unjustly treated, he
can appeal to the Board of Revision, which consists of the collector,
naval officer, and surveyor. The successful candidates are placed
on trial in the Custom-House, and if, at the end of six months'
probation, they receive the recommendations of the heads of their
departments, they obtain regular appointments. * This six-months'
probation is thus made the test of faithfulness, energy, and prac-
tical ability.

The following are a few of the questions in a recent admission
examination :

What is the sum of

307 millionths,
56^ ten-thousandths,
68^ hundredths.
5 hundred-thousandths.
256^ tenths,
18^ ten-millionths,
375 units.
At $0,125 P^^ pound, how much sugar can be bought for
$6,255?

An invoice of railway bars specifies 3,622 bars, 127 feet long,
weighing 60 pounds to the yard. What will the duty amount to
at the rate of 70 cents per hundred pounds ?

A certain invoice amounting to £,Z^^ 8s. 3d. is subject to a dis-
count oi lY-z per cent. What is the payable amount in United
States currency, the ^ sterling being worth $4.8665 ?

What bodies of water and of land separate the United States
from South America ?

Name the five important battles of the rebellion.
In what does treason against the United States consist ?
In grammar. Correct the following sentences :
A ship sails splendid.
His time as well as his money were lost.
It was arranged between he and I.

lO CIVIL SERVICE.

Letter. — Describe the city of New York.

The same general subjects are embraced in the promotion as in
the admission examinations, but the latter are more technical and
difficult ; in promotion, also, past record is a very important item.
The following are some of the " custom " questions in the pro-
motion examination of March 29, 1881.

1. What department of the customs first assumes charge of ves-
sels arriving from foreign ports ?

2. What kind of papers authorizes the discharge and delivery
of cargoes of merchandise ?

3. What disposition is made of unclaimed goods ?

4. Explain the difference between " bonded warehouses,"
"general order stores," and "appraisers' stores."

5. In which division of the Custom-House are duties first esti-
mated, and in which finally adjusted ?

6. What are the duties and objects of the weighers' depart-
ment ?

7. What is done with goods fraudulently imported in violation
of the revenue laws ?

8. What is the " manifest" of a vessel ?

Letter. — Describe your duties in the position now held by you,
and state their relations to the whole course of business in the
Custom-House, explaining as far as possible the nature and pur-
pose of such papers and accounts as come before you.

The system is new and examination questions are, therefore,
not always as perfect as they might be. In promotions, for in-
stance, too much attention has been given to general and too
little to technical knowledge. To remedy this, not only will the
papers henceforth be made more technical, but past record, which
at presents counts one fifth, will probably, in the future, count
much more.

The admission examinations secure the entrance into the ser-
vice of able men ; the promotion examinations render the em-
ployees painstaking, progressive, and ambitious. Up to August
I, 1881, 197 persons had been examined for promotion, and 72

CIVIL SERVICE. II

had been successful. It is a striking fact that those who entered
under the new rules have succeeded best in the promotion examina-
tions. Although, on the average, they have constituted only ten
per cent, of those who were at liberty to compete with them, they
have yet obtained seventy per cent, of the total promotions in the
service, or seven times as many as they were entitled to by their
numbers. In other words, those who entered under the system
of patronage, although having the advantages of long experience,
and being on the average ten times as numerous as those who
entered under the examination system, were still unable in the
competitive examinations to obtain one third of the total promo-
tions. This fact alone speaks volumes for the efficiency of those
who have entered under the new system.

The questions to answer now are : What class of men have en-
tered the service under the system of examinations ? Are they
mere book-worms ? Have they energy and practical capacity ?
Are they industrious, trustworthy, and obedient ? The perusal
of the following table will answer some of these questions.

The charge has been often made that the examination is favor-
able to young men who have just graduated from school or
college ; but the facts are that the most successful candidates
have been men between the years of thirty and thirty-nine, and that
men between forty and forty-five have been more successful than
those between twenty-five and twenty-nine, and equal nearly to
those under twenty-five. Naturally those above forty-five have
not fared so well. The great complaint of the examiners is that
the men who enter the service are too old ; men above thirty-five
are not always sufficiently facile, and often find difficulty in adapt-
ing themselves to the routine work of their offices.

The great fault which our business men find with the examina-
tions is usually in the questions on geography, history, and
government : these questions, they say, are adapted for school-
boys and not for men of the world. But it is curious to observe,
that, on these questions, applicants above thirty have been far
more successful than those below that age.

CIVIL SERVICE.

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CIVIL SERVICE. 13

General aptitude was determined by age, previous experience,
business knowledge, time of performing the examination, and
general appearance of work. In estimating the marks for age,
95 per cent, were given to candidates between 18 and 24 years, 88
to those between 25 and 30, 100 to those between 31 and 40, 95 to
those between 41 and 45, and so on. This was deemed to give
an unfair advantage to men between 31 and 40, so that at present
all men between the years of 18 and 45 (the limit between which
applicants are now allowed to try,) compete on equal terms.
"General average of previous marks" has taken the place of
"general aptitude," and young men can now enter the examina-
tions without being handicapped. ■ancroft l-.brarv

In marking the candidates in respect to " time," two hundred
marks are given to all who finish by twelve o'clock, and a cer-
tain per cent, is deducted for every twenty minutes after that
time, up to the end of the examination. It has been charged
also that this " time estimate " was unjust to middle-aged men,
who are supposed to be less fresh in examination practice ; but
on inspection of the table, it will be found that " time " has been
one chief cause of the success of men between thirty and forty-
five. In arithmetic, which is one of the most practical tests, the
young men seem to have fared best. It is apparent, therefore,
that the critics of the examination system have been unjust to
our young men. The latter have failed mainly in the subjects
which the critics have claimed were especially adapted to them ;
and the very facts which have been brought forward to show that
young men alone could enter the service, have been found to
militate severely against them. Had the suggestions of these
critics been carried out, there would have been at present more
young men in the service.

With regard to the education of the applicants, six classes
have been made. Applicants educated at the New York Free
Academy have been so signally successful, that they have been
placed in a distinct class. It is seen that those who have received
academic, collegiate, and special technological education have had

CIVIL SERVICE.

an advantage over those who have been educated in free schools
and business colleges. Naturally superiority of education should
have an advantage in admission examinations. It is an indica-
tion that with the continuance of the examination system, a
superior class of men will enter our public service. Some
opponents of Civil-Service Reform maintain that the system of
competitive examinations " gives priority to college men." If
such men prove to be the best civil servants it is for the interest
of the country to obtain them. The following table, however,
will dispel any fear that our public service will be filled with
college graduates :

RECORD OF APPLICANTS AND APPOINTEES, UNDER THE EXAMINA-
TION SYSTEM, IN THE NEW YORK CUSTOM-HOUSE, UP TO AND
INCLUDING THE 48TH EXAMINATION, FEB. I, 1881.

Number
examined.

Number
appointed.

Per cent.of
appoint-
ees to
number
of appli-
cants.

Per cent, of
appointees in
each class to
whole num-
ber appoint-
ed.

Educated at schools, etc.,
supported wholly by
public taxation .

Educated at academies

" colleges . .

490
191

^5-
22.
16.

60.10

3333
6.50

Total

731

123

In the first class are included many who had received a very
defective education, like those, for example, who '' left school
when ten years old," or " attended district school during two
winters." Nevertheless sixty per cent, of the appointees have
been educated in free schools, and only six and one half per cent,
have been educated in colleges. Those educated in academies
have succeeded, /r^ rata^ better than the college men. In view

CIVIL SERVICE. 15

of these facts, instead of fearing that a dehige of college men
would be poured into our civil service, under the examination
system, we should rather desire that the number of college men
who obtain appointments under that system should be greatly
increased.

By far the larger number of applicants have received only a
common-school education. If, now, the system of entrance into
the civil service by examination were made universal, thousands
would enter the public schools with the intention of fitting them-
selves for the service ; and this fact would naturally act as a
stimulant to render those schools more efficient.

As regards the personal qualities of the men who have entered
under the examination system, the most encouraging reports have
been given by the heads of departments. The new men have
more energy, practical ability, industry, trustworthiness, and obe-
dience than have been shown by those who entered under the
system of patronage. It is true that all the qualities of a man
cannot be discovered by a written examination, but the six-
months' probation is as important a test as the examination. The
successful candidate is placed on trial for six months : if he
shows the requisite qualities of fitness, he receives the recom-
mendation of the head of his department, and, consequently, a
final appointment ; but without this recommendation his salary
ceases. Of the 177 men who have been successful in the admis-
sion examinations, fifteen have failed to receive appointments,
mainly on account of intemperate habits. The six-months' pro-
bationary trial is the answer to President Arthur's objection that
the examination does not test an applicant's energy, practical
ability, and trustworthiness. The examination is the best test of
those qualifications which can be discovered without a long trial.
Under the patronage system the appointing power cannot dis-
cover a man's practical ability, obedience, and force of character
until he has tried him. To rely on the recommendations of an
applicant's friends, is to rely on the weakest evidence. If a man
is found to be abler than any of his competitors in penmanship.

1 6 CIVIL SERVICE.

arithmetic, general knowledge, and speed in turning off work,
he is not liable to be less industrious, efficient, obedient, and
trustworthy than those who are inferior to him in those re-
quirements. In truth, is it not probable that a man who is in-
dustrious, earnest, careful, and able for his own interest, in the
examinations, will be so for his employer ? It is true that we can-
not be sure of obtaining the most trustworthy, energetic, or prac-
tical men. Very probably there are among the fifty-seven who
are unsuccessful, three men who have more energy and practical
capacity than the three who are successful. But by what system
can we better discover the necessary qualifications ? The exam-
ination system is not perfect, but it is the best which has yet been
discovered. When a superior system is brought forward, it will
receive the support of all civil-service reformers.

Competitive examinations give the broadest field for choosing
the ablest men in the requisite educational qualifications. Now, it
is for the interest of the successful candidates to be faithful in
the discharge of their duties. This fact will be clearer to a clever,
than to a dull man ; and as those who are successful in the ex-
aminations are clever men, they are more liable than their less
able competitors to be faithful clerks.

To examine carefully all the applicants for positions would oc-
cupy the whole time of the collector or naval officer, and he could
not then be sure of obtaining men whose educational qualifica-
tions equal those of the present appointees,

A prominent politician has declared that, under the present
system, neither Cornelius Vanderbilt nor George Law could have
obtained a clerkship in the New York Custom-House, as neither
of these gentlemen could write legibly or spell correctly. Such
men as Vanderbilt and Law we do not wish for custom-house offi-
cers. It is better for the country and for the service that they
should be in private business. But we do want officers who can
both write and spell. It is objected that neither business men
nor managers of large corporations appoint employees by com-
petitive examinations. It should be remembered that they are

CIVIL SERVICE. 17

not subject to the intense conflict of influence which is exerted
by friends of applicants on the appointive power under the sys-
tem of patronage. Men at the head of large private concerns
have usually a pecuniary interest in appointing efficient employees ;
but in government positions the appointive power often obtains
more advantage in bestowing offices upon his friends than in
wisely and economically performing the duties of his office. But
aside from this argument, large corporations are gradually adopt-
ing competitive examinations as a means of entrance into their
service. The Bank of England, the London and Westminster Bank,
and the Spottswoode Printing-House of London have long used
the examination system with success. The street-railway conduc-
tors in most of our large cities are obliged to pass an examination
before they obtain positions, and as our corporations increase in
size and become better organized, examinations therein will doubt-
less become more frequent.

It seems fitting here to give due credit to the man who has been
the chief cause of the success of the reform in the New York
Custom-House — to Naval Officer Burt. As early as 187 1, while
Deputy Naval Officer, Colonel Burt first tried the examinations
in reorganizing the naval office. Since that day he has worked
for the success of the system with a courage, persistency, and
ardor, that is an anomaly in our public officers. Although opposed
and hampered, secretly and openly, by his subordinates and su-
periors, he has rigidly persisted in carrying out this reform at the
risk of his official position. It has been a source of wonder that
so ardent and sincere a reformer could have held his position so
long ; but he has won the respect and admiration not only of the
advocates, but also of the opponents of the system, and under his
management the naval office has been pointed out as a model de-
partment in our civil service. Mr. John M. Comstock, Deputy
Naval Officer, has ably assisted Col. Burt in the reform, Mr.
Comstock's enthusiasm, patience, and industry, have greatly assisted
the success of the examinations.

Ten years ago routine clerks in the custom-house acted tow-

1 8 CIVIL SERVICE,

ard the appointive powers with the cringing servility of serfs tow-
ard their masters. If an employee became interested in his
official work, and thereby neglected the political work of his dis-
trict, a delegation would soon wait on the naval officer or collec-
tor, and force him to discharge the efficient employee and bestow
the office on some active ward politician. Now, on the contrary,
the employees while they are respectful toward their superiors
have at the same time manly independence.

Applicants are not questioned concerning their political prefer-
ences ; Democrats, therefore, as well as Republicans have received
appointments. Indeed some clerks have complained because
Democrats have been taken into the service.

Hitherto it has been possible to make temporary appointments
of three months, without an examination ; and by this means
the appointive powers in the custom-house have at times sought
to evade the examination rules, and to appoint their political
friends to office. But temporary appointments have now ceased,
and if the custom-house authorities continue to do their duty,
political power can have no influence in appointment to routine
positions.

Civil- service reform will not make all men honest in politics,
but it will give less opportunity for unscrupulous demagogues to
profit by the indolence of the better elements in the community.
It is asserted that it is idle to suppose that patronage can be elimi-
nated from our politics, especially in this selfish age. The re-
formers deny the assertion, and are seeking to rouse all patriotic
citizens to the denial by their votes. As England has done, so
can we do. If we cannot entirely eliminate patronage, we can at
least so limit its influence that its evils will be trifling in compari-
son with those existing at present. Had any civil-service reformer
dared, a year ago, to predict such an extraordinary increase in the
reform movement as has occurred during the past year, he might
well have been deemed wild. The National Civil-Service Reform
League has been recently formed, and every week witnesses an
accession to the League of some prominent association. New

CIVIL SERVICE. 19

York, Philadelphia, Boston St. Louis, Chicago, Baltimore, San
Francisco, and nearly every prominent city in the country has its
association, which is composed of the most prominent and
wealthy citizens in each locality. The reform has been shown to
be practicable ; it has already seized upon the public mind, and
already wise politicians are seeing the necessity of bending to its
views. President Arthur has exceeded all his predecessors in
office in the boldness with which he has advocated specific meas-
ures of reform ; and yet he had not been considered to be in
favor of the movement. In his present stand, however, he
should receive the support of all civil-service reformers.

The reform is fast coming ; it will soon be more than an ex-
periment, and our politicians should guide themselves accord-
ingly.

Civil- Sej^vice Befomn

In regard to the effects of the present " spoils " system In our Civil
Service, JAMES A. GARFIELD wrote in 1877:

" The present system invades the independence of the Executive and makes him
less responsible for the character of his appointments ; it impairs the efficiency of the
legislator by diverting him fiom his proper sphere of duty and involving him in the
intrigues of aspirants for office ; it degrades the Civil Service itself by destroying the
personal independence of those who are appointed ; it repels from the service those
high and manly qualities which are so necessary to a pure and efficient administration;
and, finally, it debauches the public mind by holding up public office as the reward of
mere party zeal."

How can these evils be remedied ? By admitting applicants to subordinate
offices in our Civil Service on competitive examinations which shall best test those
qualities required in the office to be filled. This system will give to every person,
whether he be Democrat or Republican, an equal right to enter the public service • it
will give to our government the wisest and best choice of servants ; it will break the
power of patronage and cause subordinate offices to be given for approved merit and
not for ability in controlling votes.

What will be the effects of this reform ? it will apply only to the subordi-
nate and clerical officers of the government— those whose duties have no necessary
connection with the policy of the Administration. In 1879 there were 78,180 such sub-
ordinate officers on the rolls of the national government, whose combined salaries
amounted to §38.772,943. Most of these officers are clerks, and under the reform
would be appointed by competitive examination. Under the "spoils" system these
78,180 offices can be used by the party in power to perpetuate its hold upon the gov-
ernment, and can be held out by all political parties as bribes to voters. But this
$38,772,943 represents only a portion of the "spoils" fund of the national govern-
ment .- there is the fund of our States and cities to be added. In New York City there
are 7,802 persons employed, not counting teachers and laborers, whose salaries amount
to $8,000,000 annually. Consider the immense "spoils" fund in our national, state,
and city governments, which is now used to bribe voters, and which will be swept
away by the system of competitive examinations. Is it not true that the "spoils"
system causes principles to be forgotten and political parties to be merely machines
for obtaining and holding office ?

Is the reform practicable? in England it has succeeded and has given the
Civil Service more manly, industrious, and efficient servants. The Bank of England,
the London and Westminster Bank, the Spottiswoode printing-house of London, and
other great corporations, have tried the examination system with signal advantage.
But an example of the success of the reform has been given in our own country. At
present seventy-six per cent, of the appointments in the New York Custom-House are
made by competitive examination, and if a man proves himself the ablest applicant,
he may obtain a position, be he Democrat or Republican.

The Civil-Service Reform Association is endeavoring to bring about the above re-
form in our national, State, and city governments, and invites all patriotic citizens to
jom Its numbers and assist in purifying our politics and improving our Civil Service,

Annual dues for Membership, $2.

For in/brtnaiion and pamphlets address

WILLIAM POTTS, Secretary,

CIVIL-SERVICE REFORM ASSOCIATION,

44 Pine Street, New York City.

PRESIDENT.

GEORGE WILLIAM CURTIS.

VICE-PRESIDENTS.
BENJ. H. BRISTOW, GEO. B. MCCLELLAN,

HOWARD POTTER, JOHN JAY,

ROSWELL D. HITCHCOCK, ROBERT B. MINTURN,

OSWALD OTTENDORFER, GEORGE B. BUTLER.

TREASURES.

JOHN C. ENO.

SECRETARY.

WILLIAM POTTS,

44 PINE STREET, NEW YORK.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.

EVERETT p. WHEELER. Chairman,

HENRY W. BELLOWS, CHAS. H. MARSHALL,

SILAS W. BURT, GEO. HAVEN PUTNAM,

EDWARD GARY, WM. GARY SANGER,

CHARLES COLLINS, ANSON PHELPS STOKES,

DORMAN B. EATON, HENRY STONE,

ELIAL F. HALL, WM. H. THOMSON,
CHARLES D. INGERSOLL, FREDERICK W. WHITRIDGE.

PUBLICATION COMMITTEE.
E. L. GODKIN, Chairman,

GEO. WILLIAM CURTIS, A. R. MACDONOUGH,

HORACE WHITE, CARL SCHURZ.

COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATION.
DORMAN B. EATON, Chairman,

EVERETT P. WHEELER, ORLANDO B. POTTER.

AUDITING COMMITTEE.

GEO. B. BUTLER, Chairman, ELIAL F. HALL.

COMMITTEE ON FINANCE,

IRA BURSLEY, ORLANDO B. POTTER,

THOMAS B. MUSGRAVE, JNO. C. ENO.

COMMITTEE ON AFFILIATED SOCIETIES.
GEO. W. VAN SICLEN, Chairman,

CHAS. D. INGERSOLL, FREDERICK W. WHITRIDGE.